The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-07-21
SETTING A MAN RIGHT.
Civility and Impertinence Toward
Strangers in America and Europe.

From the Chicago Ne,oS.
II have often been amused" said a citi-
zen of the world, ''by people whom l have
met in England who had just returned from
O short visit to the United States. Their
familiarity with everything American and
their ability to sum up the characteristics of
the people used to strike me as nothing short
of marvellous For, as a matter of fact, it
would be no more audacious for a traveller
from this side of the pond, after having
passed a fortnight in Paris, peeped into
Switzerland. visited St Peters at Rome,
and finished up with Brussels, Heidelberg,
and the Rhine--lingering on his way home
few days in London, to proceed to write
an exhaustive essay on the people of Europe.
Yet this is what is constantly being done,
and no doubt many of the misapprehensions
which exist between the people of this
country and those on the other side are due
to this cause. One would fancy, to hear
some people speak, that the inhabitants of
the United States were everywhere as like
to each other as SO many of the same kind of
cheeses, or nutmegs, or peas, or Cinnamon.
''There are, however, ways and man
ners in different places which may be truly
and accurately noted, and which involve no
such impertinence or absurdity. In visiting
various countries and their cities it has
been my habit to walk about a great deal,
and in doing so it has been interesting to
observe differences in what may be called
outdoor or street manners These differ
verv widely in the various states and in the
parts of Europe which | have visited. To
confine ones self almost entirely to the
matter of asking the way, found in Hol-
land and Belgium that it was dangerous to
do so if one did not intend to pay for the
slight courtesy of direction As one of
many instances, | remember arriving in
Rotterdam on a dark night, and, being be-
wildered at the railway depot, asking a
stranger of genteel appearance the way.
Instead of directing me he politely pro
ceeded to show me the road to my steamer.
Having thanked him cordially and said
good night, | was departing in peace, when
I.heard the word 'schnapps' emphatically
uttered, and the pleasant illusion as to the
courtesy of the Hollander vanished. In
France, so far as my experience goes, things
are different. | shall never forget the
charming manner of a nun, who was ac-
companied by number of children, and
who had somehow heard that | had lost my
way, as | had. 1t was in Normandy, about
a dozen miles from Rouen. OF course the
sister never would have dreamed of pour
boire but her kindness and patience in set
ting me right were refreshing to degree
So in Paris, the eagerness of bright youth
to see that didn't go wrong was typical of
my whole experience there.
Sin London it is different. People seem
to consider it nuisance to give directions,
and you observe in their eyes something
like why the dickens don't you take u cab
or a carr Then, again, certain class of
persons will absolutely direct you wrong,
while others will complicate matters so
that you begin not to know where you are,
let alone where you are going to. But OF
all the cities for incivility in this respect
Manchester, England, takes the cake, in my
experience In Market street one night
while still completely strange to the city, /
asked a native for Market street. His
answer was: FOLLOW thee nose, the
dOmmed fool
This country is, OH the whole, far ahead
in manners of this kind The pleasant salu-
tations on rural ways that one meets with
in MARYLAND and Virginia, and doubtless in
many other parts of the states, are very
refreshing to the foreigner. In Baltimore
had again occasion To remark the courtesy
of those of whom ] asked the way One
gentleman OF color walked with me quite
long way, and, it need not be said, neither
limited at nor dreamed Of chnapps.'
Asking him as we went along
the population of the city, he said
$4,000 'Forty-eight thousandp l ex-
claimed, with surprise. Yes he said;
adding: that was at the last census, and of
course there viii be more now
'As you approach purely manufacturing
or industrial cities, like Pittsburg, street
manners and civiity generally seem to de-
cline There is, however, SO far as | can
Judge, no city in which obligingncSs in the
matter OF directing one on his way is moro
marked than il is in Chicago How this
should be the case do not pretend to say,
but that it is 80 [ have not only my own
Judgment to tell me, but, being interested
IN the subject and having asked many
others for their experience, | have found a
unanimous verdict to the same effect.
New York does not shine in this respect. II
may be that people there fancy themselves
too busy TO be troubled, or that they nre
different to everybodys concerns but their
own. ANYWAY, when they get to heaven
they won't be accused Of overpoliteness on
the street,